Michael Wilbon, the longtime Washington Post columnist who now occupies ESPN's studio during its NBA telecasts, wasn't thrilled in recent weeks about Memphis' desire to trade Rudy Gay. To him, the concept represented the idea that the Grizzlies were "punting" on a once-promising team that had a shot for a title.

Mostly, the national NBA cognoscenti had at least guarded positive reaction to the trade for Memphis late Wednesday and early Thursday, especially when taking into account the team's plight as it pertains to the NBA's salary cap and luxury tax.

Chris Mannix, a columnist at SI.com, held out a dissenting view. "Gone goes Gay, gone goes Speights and Ellington, gone goes Memphis' chance to win a championship," Mannix wrote. Mannix went on to quote an unnamed Western Conference scout as saying "these trades are absolutely terrible."

That's not how Matt Moore, a blogger at CBSSports.com, judged the trade. In a comprehensive evaluation of it for all three sides involved (Memphis, Toronto and Detroit), Moore gave the Grizzlies an A-. "Had they simply tossed (Gay) for cap filler, it would have been a loss," Moore wrote. "But instead, Memphis got three pieces back which will have an impact for the team."

CBSSports.com NBA columnist Ken Berger had a slightly more dour view. He's not of the view that the Grizzlies are any better off after the trade, but he does understand why they did it. "Are the Grizzlies better on the court as a result of all this? No, they would've had a better shot if they'd stopped after the Cleveland trade and kept plodding along," Berger wrote. "But it's clear that the new tax penalties in the CBA have been heard loud and clear. Unlike in Los Angeles or Brooklyn, in Memphis you play chicken with the luxury tax at your own peril. Do I like the trade for Memphis? It doesn't matter if I like it or not; I understand it."

At the True Hoop blog on ESPN.com, Henry Abbott summed up the views in and out of Shelby County. "Many Memphians see this as breaking up a contender. I see it as defusing a financial time bomb," Abbott wrote. Chris Sheridan, a veteran NBA reporter now writing at his own site, declared Memphis the winner of the trade. "I like Rudy Gay. But when the guy who is leading your team in scoring is shooting a shade above 40 percent, you have a problem," Sheridan wrote.

Locally, the reaction centered in large part around the understanding of the Grizzlies' financial situation. Commercial Appeal columnist Geoff Calkins said he's OK with it. Radio host Chris Vernon is on board. His colleague at WMFS-FM, Gary Parrish, is a bit more skeptical. WHBQ-AM/FM talker Peter Edmiston is talking himself into liking it. At the Memphis Flyer, Chris Herrington asks if this was the best Memphis could do. "Apparently so," he wrote. And the blog Straight Outta Vancouver lists positives and negatives to the trade.

And what of you, Average Joe Fan? Here's a compilation of tweets from the Memphis area last night and this morning that used the word 'Rudy':